Homeownership Reset?

According to a paper by Andrew Haughwout, Richard Peach, and Joseph Tracy of the NY Fed, “US homeownership is already lower than you think” — just 61.6%.

The graph above compares the the peak homeownership rate, the current rate, and the percent of homeowners with positive equity for 10 of the largest U.S. metro regions. Less than half of homeowners have positive equity in their homes in eight of 10 of these metros: In Las Vegas, the figure is less than 20 percent.

Other economists also pointed out the level of underwater mortgages poses economic problems as well as tremendous personal economic pain. Some suggested that the ability to constantly refinance homes and mortgage loans makes the U.S. system less effective and less stable.